Madonna Radio 1 move 'nothing personal'

Radio 1 boss Ben Cooper has insisted there was 'nothing personal' in the decision not to include Madonna's latest single on the station's playlist.

Fans of t he Material Girl singer, 56, who has repeatedly reinvented herself over the last 30 years, said the station snubbed her by not putting Living For Love on the playlist, which rates songs on musical merit and relevance to its listeners.

Mr Cooper said: "We do not ban artists. There's nothing personal about Madonna. I think it's just about the merit of the music that the artist is creating at the time.'

'We have one of the most democratic playlist committees in the world and it's worked for Madonna for the last 20 odd years but it just means that this current record, when it's a choice between that and say Wolf Alice or a new up-and-coming artist, then you say 'which is more relevant to a young audience?''

Living For Love was released ahead of schedule due to internet leaks and was the track she was performing at the Brits when she tumbled in front of millions of viewers after getting caught up in her cape.

Sir Paul McCartney, who at 72 is 16 years older than Madonna, has been on the playlist recently and presenter Annie Nightingale, 74, is significantly older than Madonna. She is on air every Tuesday between 1am and 4am.

From Press Association Via Yahoo! News